Secrets
by xXRyo-FyeXx
Summary: Everyone has secrets. Secrets are not meant to be shared. Secrets are not meant for anyone else to know. Secrets are meant to be just that: secret. So how do you keep a secret that's slowly killing you?
1. How it all started

_She sat quietly, watching as she always did. She saw her friends, laughing and joking together, and him sitting alone. He used to be surrounded by people who called themselves his friends, but they all lied. They didn't care what happened to him. All because of the stupid war, his "friends" had abandoned him when he'd needed them most._

_She knew that he hardly talked to Blaise anymore (she and the Italian had been friends since first year). Blaise had told her everything one night, when he had found the blonde crying, not even caring that Blaise had seen him. That was when she'd found out he had become a Death Eater, why it had happened, what he had to do, but the whole time was silent. She had her own secret that only a handful knew about, and Harry and Ron were not in that handful. They couldn't know. She figured that was how he felt. He couldn't tell anyone. No one would understand. He was wrong; she understood perfectly_

_She confronted him later, cornering him in the library, and demanding that he let her help him._

_"You'd help me kill Dumbledore? You wouldn't, Granger," he said softly, staring out the window._

_"Please-"_

_"No. You need to stop him, not help him."_

_"I'll do what I want," she stood beside him, "and I want to help you."_

_"Why? Why me?" he glared at her, "You hate me! And you should! I've been nothing but terrible to you since the first day I met you, and you want to help me? Are you mental?"_

_"No one should suffer, Malfoy, especially alone. Even you shouldn't have to suffer."_

_He shook his head, "Go, Granger, before Potter and Weasley find you talking to me."_

_"I don't care."_

_"Why are you so stubborn?"_

_She sighed and looked down at his left arm, "You think that no one understands what you're going through. They don't understand being the outcast, forced to do something that you don't want to do, be someone that you're not, and keep a horrible secret," she held his left forearm, pushing up the sleeve, and tracing the Mark, looking up into his grey eyes. She felt like those eyes knew what her secret was, as if it was tattooed on her face that she was no longer human…_

_"You're wrong. Your secret is not as terrible as some. At least you have someone who knows and is willing to help." She broke the gaze to look at his Mark and traced it again, "I can figure out a way to remove it- a spell or potion. It can't be that hard-"_

_"It can't be removed," he whispered, placing a hand over hers, "Ironic, isn't it?"_

_"How?" she looked up confused._

_"You don't see it? We've always been horrid to each other…and now…we're being civil."_

_"People change," she smiled, "You're not as mean as you used to be."_

_"And you're not as bossy," he smirked_

_Two months later, they sat together in the library. Not talking, just sitting and reading. She's agreed to help him with his classes, since he refused to allow her to help with the plans he was forced to carry out. He was different than he used to be, she soon realized. He didn't call her names, didn't torment her every second, and was actually quite polite. She found that she actually preferred his company to Harry and Ron, especially when Lavender was around. What the redhead saw in that girl, she would never understand._

_Draco found he enjoyed every minute of her company. Besides Blaise, she was the only other person he felt he could talk to. She wasn't like the others. She was smart, could hold a conversation, and kept him on edge. He found that the only times she'd ever be uncivil toward him was when he started the argument. She was like an angel sent to him. She constantly would tell him to eat more or would ask him about his mother, anything to take his mind off of Hogwarts. And he appreciated it greatly._

_The only thing he hated was every other week she would be missing from their study sessions. She never told him why, but she would be gone for about 5 days, and then she would suddenly be there. The first time he was confused and was tempted to ask her, but she'd looked so tired, he held his tongue. She was always looking like that now. Her skin was turning a ghostly pale colour, black had started to surround her eyes like a raccoon's, and he noticed that a few times she would have extremely faint bruises covering her arms and parts of her face. She would normally wear long-sleeves or a jacket, and he could tell she'd tried to cover up the bruises on her face because they were never visible during the school day. _

_"Granger."_

_"Hmm?" she looked up from the reading, and he noticed that she had a faint scar running along the left side of her face, barely missing her eye._

_"Why are you always covered in bruises?" he whispered, trying to keep his face stoic. When had it become so hard for him to hide his emotions from her?_

_"What are you talking about?"_

_"You're covered in bruises. You hide them really well during school, but I can always see them here. Why do you have them?" He swore that if she said Weasley hit her, or if anyone hit her, they would pay. She was too kind for that to happen._

_"Oh," her brain worked overtime to think of an answer, "Ginny and I have been practicing a type of Muggle-style fighting. She doesn't know how, so I offered to teach her. She's getting quite good at it actually."_

_It wasn't a total lie. She had taught Ginny about kick-boxing…years ago…but he didn't need to know that. She just hoped he bought her lie. He only blinked and returned to his essay, but she could tell that he didn't buy it. At least he didn't push her for the truth. And for that, she was thankful._

_He wasn't playing Quidditch. He loved Quidditch. So why the hell wasn't he playing, when he could finally beat Harry? She sighed. He was fixing whatever it was. She knew that's where he had to be. She knew she couldn't cheer for him like she cheered for Harry and Ron, but if he were there, she would've. House rivalry be damned. He was a friend and he needed someone to show him that someone cared._

_She left the match early. She didn't wait to see who would win. She knew Harry would catch the Snitch in no time. She needed to find him and make sure he was okay. Last time…last time she'd found him close to crying, and she didn't want to know what he would do if he was allowed to sit and think that he was a failure._

_No. She'd find him…_

_He raked his hands through his hair again. He'd failed again. _

_"Dammit!" he covered his face with his hands and let out an angry yell. "Why can't it fucking work?"_

_He raked his scalp again, feeling a few strand of hair come loose. He did it again and again even when he felt blood seep through the shallow cuts, until he felt soft hands pull his away._

_"Draco," it said softly, "Draco stop."_

_He shook his head. How could she know how it felt? His family was at stake and he still couldn't fix the damn thing. But the soft voice and the gentle rubbing on his back made him surrender. He reached out and pulled her onto his lap, his arms wrapped securely around her waist, his face buried in her neck, scared that he might start to cry._

_She stilled for a minute. He'd never done this. Never let her be this close without yelling at her. She shook her head and quickly healed the cuts on his head with her wand. He still hadn't let her go, basically refusing when she attempted to push him away, so she just stayed there, running her fingers through his hair and down his back. With every pass of her fingers she felt his muscles loosen but she could still feel tears falling freely from his eyes onto her neck._

_"Draco," she whispered, "Draco, look at me."_

_He only moved when she tugged on his hair, but he kept his gaze down, ashamed that he was actually crying. Gently, she used her sleeve to wipe away the tears, even as they kept falling. She couldn't say anything when he finally looked up at her, his eyes red, but she felt her heart break. She couldn't help him, he wouldn't let her, but she could at least make him not feel worthless. She could at least help him, since she couldn't help herself._

_"Better?" she tried to smile, tried to make him feel better._

_He nodded once, then shook his head after a moment, causing her to laugh a little at him not being able to make up his mind._

_"If you keep pulling your hair out, you'll go bald."_

_"Merlin forbid that should ever happen," he rasped out, smirking, "I'll still have my good looks so it'll be alright."_

_"Hmm, I don't know," she ran her hand through his blonde locks, "I kind of like your hair. Helps add to your so-called "good looks". But we do need to get out of the corridor before the others come back from the game."_

_He nodded and let her up, following her when she stood. _

_She growled in annoyance and walked away from her idiotic redheaded friend who was currently yelling at her for charming his quill to attack him whenever he spelled a word wrong. Technically, she hadn't done it. She had told Harry and Ginny that maybe he would learn if his quill told him he was wrong since he never listened to her when she told him. Apparently they thought her idea was brilliant. Ron didn't think it was._

_She found herself entering the Room of Requirement, the inside changed to put her in a better mood. The room was now the size of her common room, with a fireplace and a few couches and chairs. There were several bookcases lining the walls and a window that was showing the night sky with snow falling. Hermione grabbed a book before curling up on the couch that was as wide as her bed. She sighed in contentment and lost herself in the book and the warmth of the couch. She didn't even notice when someone entered the room._

_The blonde just shook his head before walking over to her. He smirked when he noticed that she was trying not to fall asleep while reading. She jumped when she felt the pillow behind her disappear only to be replaced with something that definitely wasn't a pillow. She didn't move when she felt an arm go around her waist and pull her against something hard, a leg appeared on either side of her, and then she heard a deep sigh. She relaxed when she saw the ring on the hand that was currently resting on her arm._

_"You could've asked me to move," she smirked when the only answer she got was a soft grunt. She went back to reading her book but after a while found it difficult with her "pillow" moving and causing her to feel sleepy. She gently dropped her book on the floor and slightly turned to curl up closer to the warmth. She wondered when their "friendship" had changed so much that he allowed her to be this close, that she actually was okay with laying on a couch with Draco Malfoy. And she found that she really didn't care and was content with just lying there and forgetting about everything for the time being._

_Draco was thinking the same though. He wondered when this girl, who was almost asleep and curled up against him, had crawled under his skin and when he had ever allowed someone to be this close to him. He didn't know why it hurt every time she was with Potter and Weasley or why he felt a sudden urge to tear out the eyes of any adolescent boy who looked at her. Sure, he was known as the Slytherin Sex God, but that was just a name. He could count on one hand how many girls he'd been with, whether sexually or just allowed them to be this close to him, and Hermione was the ring finger. Unlike most people of the people he had been around during his life, when he was with Hermione, he didn't feel like he had to prove anything. He didn't feel the need to be anything but himself, but he didn't even know who that was anymore._

_He also realized that if he could stay like this, with no other cares in the world, and just stay there with her, then he would be happy. He didn't care when their "friendship" changed, but he found that he wanted it to keep changing, and that now…now he couldn't see his life without Hermione Granger._

_A few months later, she sat in the Astronomy Tower around midnight, tired of hearing Ron talking about "the stupid git" and Lavender trying to talk to him. She wondered what she was going to do over the summer, about what her, Harry, and Ron were going to do about Voldemort, and of Draco._

_"Granger? What are you doing here?"_

_She stood abruptly and turned to see Draco, pale and worried. "Nothing. What-"_

_"You need to hide. Now."_

_"Draco, what-" her eyes grew wide, "You fixed it. Is he here?"_

_"No, but Bellatrix is, and Greyback and a few others."_

_"What?" she took a step forward, contemplating. It would be so easy, she thought, he's here but I'm not that strong, but it would be so easy to stop him now…_

_"You need to hide, please," he begged, holding her arms, "They're going to look for you and Weasley when Dumbledore's gone. He wants Potter alone."_

_"Where's Greyback?"_

_"They're all down the stairs, waiting for Dumbledore to come back. Plea-NO!" he pulled her back when she headed for the door._

_"Let me go."_

_"Bellatrix will torture you! And when she's had enough, they'll kill you!" he looked her in the eyes when she began to struggle, "For once in your life listen to me!"_

_"I've always listened to you! I've always listened to you, to every word you've said, whether it's good or bad! I've had to listen to everything my friends have said, defended you!" she grabbed the front of his jacket and spoke quietly, "You never listened."_

_There was a thud and voices murmuring._

_"Stay here."_

_Before she could do anything, he whispered, "Please forgive me," barely kissed her lips, and left._


	2. Chapter 2

_**June 29th, 2000**_

_**Ministry of Magic**_

The elevator dinged and a woman's voice announced the floor.

"Department of Mysteries."

The solo occupant sighed and exited the compartment. The footsteps echoed down the lonely hallway, navigating left and right to find the right door. The footsteps finally stopped in front of a black door, a plaque read: **Head Auror, Harry Potter.**

A hand rose to knock but hesitated. There had been supposed sightings during the last year, but no physical proof had been found. All they had found were possible theories of what had happened. Now, after of chasing dead ends, there was now a solid lead.

Before the hand touched the wood, the door swung open to reveal none other than Harry Potter himself. His hair stood up as if he'd run his hands through it, pulling it from frustration. His glasses were no longer fully round, but more modern in style. He'd even grown a few more inches in height and in muscle build. He had circles around his eyes from the endless sleepless nights of trying to find a solid lead. Those eyes were tired but as they registered the person in front of them, they brightened and a smile donned his face.

"We may have found them," he whispered, as if afraid if he said it, then it wouldn't be true.

"What?" Draco finally spoke after a couple minutes. He was quickly pulled inside of the office and dropped into a chair from shock. He ran a hand through his platinum hair, the bangs almost falling across his eyes. He just couldn't believe it.

"What?" he repeated to the Boy-Who-Conquered.

Harry walked around his desk and opened a drawer, pulling a file out before sitting in his chair. He took a deep breath before he started to explain.

"The last sighting was in Scotland, remember?" Draco nodded once. "Well, I went with a team to check out the location. It was a shallow cave near a lake. I couldn't find anything. Nothing that showed they'd been there. Then Luna pointed out that it looked like the light from our wands casting right. In her terms, 'It doesn't look how light should.' Didn't make sense at first until I really looked. And she was right. There was a barrier."

"You knocked it down?"

"Oh, we did but only after several hours of trying. We found evidence that someone had been there. There were some tattered blankets, an area blocked off for what looked like a fire-pit, and extremely faint footprints. From the looks of everything, there had been some sort of fight, which was proven based on scratches on walls of the cave and there was also magical residue from what we believe was some sort of curse. The blankets weren't really tattered; they were more shredded and barely held together. The footprints were everywhere, and I mean everywhere. There was also a spot where we think someone was dragged away, or at least was somewhat limping. That one is still uncle-"

"Potter, how does any of this prove that they were there? That could be from anyone."

"I was getting to that, Malfoy, if you would let me finish. You really should listen to everything before jumping in. Didn't Her-"

"Get on with it…please?"

Harry smirked, "It could've been anyone, but not just anyone has a certain necklace and a certain ring that belongs to the two we're looking for."

Draco's eyes widened, "What? You mean, you found-"

"Yes."

The Boy-Who-Conquered opened the folder and took out four photographs, handing them over to the blonde. The Malfoy Heir hesitantly took the photos, looking at each carefully. Two were slightly faded; one showing a boy of Italian heritage sitting beside Draco at the Malfoy Manor, taken after they had been named as heirs of their families and received the rings that came with the title. Circled on the photo was the Italian's right ring finger. Draco knew exactly what the object that never left that finger looked like: a silver ring with an inscription around a single ruby placed in the center of the ring. The other was a close-up of a girl with curls of brown, laughing and standing between her two friends. Circled on the photo was a silver necklace, the pendant was an emerald with a black snake curled around it. The blonde felt his heart sink when he looked at the other two photographs. Each showed one of the objects circled on the other photographs. To make it worse, there was blood splashed across each of the objects.

"That's…" the blonde blinked several times to stop tears. He swore he would never cry on front of Harry Potter again. He swallowed hard, "That's all you found?"

Harry nodded sadly after seeing the change in his newfound friend. He was having a hard enough time with one of his best friends missing, but Draco was missing two people who he loved dearly. Although he knew the blonde wouldn't admit to him that he loved Harry's best friend, to Harry it was there plain as day.

"And the blood?"

"We don't know. There are no blood samples of theirs in storage to test."

"Let me help find them."

Harry sighed heavily, "You know the answer to that, Draco. Even though I trust you completely, you're not a member of my team. And Greyback is still at large and you're one of his potential targets."

"Bloody hell, Potter," the blonde threw the photos on the desk as he stood, "I turned against Voldemort, I turned against my parents, was almost killed on several occasions while doing missions that your little Order gave me that more than likely were meant to be suicide missions, helped find former Death Eaters and spies that were still in the Ministry, and you're telling me- after a year- an entire fucking year- of nothing but possible sightings and you finally have solid evidence that they're possibly alive- you're telling me that I can't help you look for two of the most important people in my life all because of a stupid werewolf and because I'm not a member of your goddamned team? You must be out of your fucking mind if you think that I'm just going to sit here and do nothing to find them."

Without another word to the Head Auror of the Department of Mysteries, Draco Malfoy turned and walked out the door, only one thing on his mind:

_I have to find them._

_**June 30th, 2000**_

_**A cave near the coastline of the British Isles.**_

There was no light, save for the last rays of the sun as it set, in the cave. The smell of blood filled the cave as a figure laid its head on a rolled up coat at the back of the cave. Another figure sat next to it, attempting to stop the wound from bleeding. Neither could risk using magic in case one had the Trace cast on them since the last scuffle.

"Shh, you need to slow your breathing or else it's only going to get worse, Granger."

She inhaled sharply as her Italian friend wrapped her stomach with bandages he found in her Bag of Holding. The wound was three long cut in the shape of claw marks going from the middle of her stomach around her left side and about two inches across her back. They were barely shallow and if they weren't treated and carefully watched, they would reopen and cause her to bleed to death.

Her voice reached his ears in between her hiccups and gasps of breath, "You know…if I didn't…didn't know any b-better, I'd s-say you were worried about m-me, Blaise."

"You know Draco will murder me if I let you die," he smirked, trying to keep her mind off of the pain.

She tried to laugh but ended up grimacing in pain, the gash across her stomach causing spikes of pain.

"I lost…lost t-the necklace," tears starting to fall from her eyes. It had been a present from the blonde on her last happy Christmas. She had gone back to Hogwarts early that break and spent the last days with him, either in the Room of Requirement, the Library, and even ice skating on the Black Lake.

"I'm sure he'll understand, Granger," the smirk left his face as he watched her grimace in pain again. He looked down at his mangled right ring finger. One of the bastards that had ambushed them had almost completely ripped the skin off his finger. That was the only reminder of his parents that he'd had. Now it was gone. He understood completely how the girl felt.

"Do-do you think they took i-it?"

"No," Blaise shook his head, "If anything, someone would've seen the flashes from the wands or heard the howls and reported it to Potter. I'm sure he would've found them."

She followed his gaze to his hand, "Blaise, y-your ring."

"It doesn't matter now."

It really didn't, at least to him. They were both alive, at least for the moment. He waited until she had fallen asleep before inching closer to the edge of the cave in order to keep watch. He made sure to keep an eye on her breathing. If she stopped at all, they were in trouble.

He watched the water ripple in the moonlight and couldn't help but wonder how Greyback had found them. It wouldn't surprise him if the werewolf had sniffed them out. Of course, it still amazed him that he and Hermione Granger, of all people, had been forced into this. This wasn't their war. Well, it hadn't been their war until they had been involuntarily thrown into all of it. He was honestly surprised that Granger had been able to keep it a secret from everyone. He had a terrible time not telling his only close friend, Draco. His parents had gone into hiding, which he found out a few months ago that Greyback had tracked them down and killed them while looking for him and Hermione.

He didn't think any of this was fair either. Draco had confided in him, told Blaise his terrible secret, but Blaise couldn't tell him his own. The part that wasn't fair was that he had to lie to his best friend. So how did Granger survive keeping this a secret from not only Potter and Weasley, but from her parents?

What he thought was worst of all was that both he and Granger had lied and avoided Draco's questions. He knew his two friends had grown close, and he was happy they had, but he knew how it hurt to lie and pretend when Draco knew that something was going on. Draco didn't deserve that. After all the horrible things he and his best friend had been through, that was something that not even Draco deserved.

_**July 1st, 2000.**_

_**British Isles, Sunset.**_

"Harry could find us."

Hermione sat up abruptly, or attempted to, clutching her stomach, "He can find us."

"What are you talking about?" Blaise ran and knelt by her, forcing her to lie back down.

"W-with the necklace a-and the ring. If he figures o-out the right spell, h-he can use it to find us," she explained quickly between gasps.

"He…no, Potter's not smart enough to think of that. Weasley's not either. That's what you were always for. Don't look at me like that; you know you were the brains of the group. Unless one of the other brainiac Aurors thinks of it, they won't for a while."

"Luna. They've got Luna on their team. G-Ginny's there, too. Nott and Draco are there, too. A-any of them would be able to f-figure it out. Blaise, they can't find us. They c-can't know!"

"Calm down, and lay down. You're gonna make yourself pass out again if you keep this up. Would it really be so bad if they knew?"

The look she gave him and her next words were an answer that he already knew.

"Blaise, you know they can't know. They…not all of them would understand. And he'll go after them too i-if they know. You know t-that he will. They **can't** know. They **can't** find us."


	3. Chapter 3

**July 17th, 2000**

**Malfoy's Flat, London, Evening….**

The blonde paced back and forth in his studies as the clock told him that he'd been doing the same thing for the last two hours. He growled low and slumped his shoulders as he contemplated everything.

Potter had told him that they had attempted to gather more information from the cave and any surrounding towns or villages. The only new thing found was that a farmer was missing some of his fresh crops but that someone had left money for said crops on his porch. Both he and the Auror had chuckled at this, because only Hermione would feel too guilt-ridden to steal from a poor farmer. So that was another clue-besides the two most obvious ones-that the two missing persons had been there. Unfortunately, for everyone involved, other news had come to the forefront that halted the investigations…

Greyback was on the move, and he was hunting for something.

There had been more than 20 cases reported in the last week that werewolves were attacking both wizards and muggles, hesitating only to ask a few simple questions. Another unfortunate had been that less than seven of those who were attacked had survived the wounds, and none of them could remember all the details of what had happened, except that there were humans who kept screaming questions at them. Questions that they had no answers for.

This was another problem for Draco and, of course, for Harry. What did they mean when they said that there were humans? Surely there was no way that werewolves could transform without the full moon. It was downright impossible…

"Maybe they aren't really werewolves then….maybe they're animagi?" Harry had mused the previous evening when he, Ron, and Theodore Nott had occupied Draco's study as the four reviewed everything accompanied by some much-needed whiskey.

"No," Theo had told him, "If they've been infected with the venom, then they are wolves, and not animagi. Animagi have to take an extremely long amount of time in order to find out which animal that they will be able to transform into. They also need a potion to help them make this form a permanent one that they can change to with conscious thought. Wolves cannot do that. They're compelled to change with the lunar pull on the full moon."

"Then how the hell do you explain the victims saying that there were some who were wolves and some who weren't?" Ron slumped further into the chair and sighed heavily.

"Familiars? Maybe?"

"No. Familiars don't go on hunts with the rest of the pack…at least, that's what we've been told by the higher-ups…" Harry grumbled and took a long drink of the whiskey before looking up at Draco.

"Well, I honestly don't know. I wasn't allowed information on Greyback when I was in the ranks, and I most certainly didn't follow him around asking questions about him being a bloody werewolf, Potter," Draco said plainly while giving the dark-haired man a look.

"Well I would hope not. Otherwise you might not be sitting here if you had, and then we'd have less people here to help us look for Mione and Blaise."

The two men shared a small knowing smile at the mention of their missing friends. While Ron secretly agreed to tolerate Malfoy and Nott, and by an unspoken mutual agreement, Nott tolerated Ron and his big mouth (with Harry, he didn't seem to have a problem), and, surprisingly, Harry and Draco had actually become close friends after settling their differences. This took place only after the two had insulted each other to the point where they were throwing hexes and the only thing that made them stop was Ginny throwing one encyclopaedia at each of their heads and telling them they were acting like a bunch of wankers before storming away.

True, the two didn't always agree on everything, and, according to Harry's red-headed wife, they bickered more than a married couple would. When she'd voiced this observation to them during one of the many arguments about what was deemed appropriate to give to a two year old, both men stared at her for a solid 10 seconds then glanced at each other before crumbling to the ground laughing until their sides ached. Ginny just shook her head and picked up little Teddy Lupin before walking away from the two men.

All had decided that it was best to get some rest and resume their theory throwing tomorrow. But Draco couldn't sleep. Something kept nagging at him. Something that he'd seen or heard but couldn't remember where from…but he was damn well sure that it had something to do with Greyback, and quite possibly explain Hermione and Blaise's disappearance…

…he could only hope the latter was truer…

**July 20th, 2000**

**Eastern coast of Ireland**

Hermione stood near the water's edge, one arm gently holding her stomach and side, which was now more of a habit than to keep her wounds in check. The cuts had healed but the scars would be there forever. Tears had stung her eyes when Blaise had made the obvious statement a few days ago. She thought of if she ever had children, and how ugly the scars would be across her extended belly….she thought of if she would ever live long enough to be able to have a love, and what he would think of those scars and the other ones that she had.…

She shook her head and slowly sat down on the sandy beach, letting the water gently lick her toes as the tears now flowed free. She had a little while to herself now while Blaise went looking for somewhere they could rest for the next few days. And she was going to use that time to let herself go and cry if she very damned well pleased. She knew that the Italian hated seeing her upset, and vice versa, so she held it all in, and now…

Now she could finally let loose. And she did. She let the tears flow silently as she thought about the last five years. Everything had changed. Everyone had changed. And she didn't feel like part of the world that she glimpsed every time they passed near a town, even before the war had begun. She, and Blaise as well, had given up any possibility of a normal life when Dumbledore had made his request of them that fateful night…

"Why didn't I just say no?" she whispered, "Why didn't I tell the old man that he was crazy and that the plan would never work…that we could die…why didn't I say no?"

"Because you knew, as well as I did, that someone had to do it," Blaise sat next to her and sighed, rubbing her back, "You know I hate seeing you cry."

"I thought you'd be gone longer," she sniffled and dried her eyes with the sleeve of the sweater she wore.

"There's nothing safe here. We may need to go back to Britain."

"That'll lead him closer to everyone. I don't want to risk it."

"If we make him think we're still here, it'll give us time to get across the Isle and get close to, possibly, Spain. Then we have more than just these two isles to travel across. We could lose him easily just like we did last year."

She thought about it for a moment and nodded. She frowned as a thought occurred to her.

"What if we're spotted by Harry's team while we're traveling?"

"They won't-"

"They know we're still alive now, Blaise. They have items that belong to us. I'm surprised they haven't used a tracking spell yet, and that's probably only because Greyback has started attacking again so the Ministry, in all its splendour, is focusing on that and in turn making Harry spend less time focusing on us. But knowing him-"

"He'll have someone watching. You know, sometimes I hate it that you're always so smart. Makes me feel like an idiot," he smiled looking over at her.

She grinned and looked out at the water, "Draco used to say that too. I would tell him of all the scenarios for…when it would finally happen, and what could go wrong…and he'd just sit there like someone told him that Ron had beaten him at Potions. It was really quite entertaining."

They sat in silence for a few moments before Blaise asked her- actually blurted out- something that had been bugging him for several years now…"What exactly is your relationship with Drake?"

To say she was shocked was an understatement. If she had to be honest, she had no idea. She opened and closed her mouth several times before finally settling on an answer: "We're something."

"Something? And what, pray tell, is something?"

"I honestly don't know Blaise. He's…I guess you could say he is actually one of my best friends but nothing other than that, I guess."

"Granger…Hermione…that boy…is most likely-and I'm pretty damned sure about this- he is most likely head over heels in love with you and is just too damn stubborn and proud to admit it."

_No, he's already admitted it_, she thought as she remembered _**that**_ night…

"Blaise, honestly, you're asking me all of this now? Of all times and all places, now?"

"Yes now. Why not now? Granted we may have Potter and Drake attempting to use all their manpower to find us, oh and don't forget about the werewolf chasing us too. Can't forget about him," Blaise grumbled the last bit, "Besides having Draco and Theo, you're one of my best friends too, you know, so I'm slightly concerned about my two best friends and their feelings towards each other."

Hermione sat there as her friend talked, not really knowing how to respond to him, and still slightly in shock that he had actually just asked her what her relationship with Draco Malfoy was. She didn't even know what to call it. She'd slept in the same bed as him when neither could sleep well and that's all they did was sleep…they were affectionate, but she was like that with all her friends…of course, there was that one night at Shell Cottage…

Despite her not answering, Blaise continued on: "Also, my name is not Potter and I am not going to sit by idly and watch as my best friends skirt around each other, everyone being too afraid to say anything in fear of upsetting the friendship. Now, I have finally managed to find a time and a way to not make it extremely awkward about the fact that I know about a certain thing that happened a couple years ago…"

He said the last part so slowly and so quietly that she almost didn't hear him.

"What….do you mean…you know about-"

"Please Hermione, neither of you were being exactly quiet. In all honestly, you could've used a silencing spell at least. Not everyone needs to hear when you two-"

"Well we both were in a little too distracted to worry about putting up a silencing charm," she glared at the ground and crossed her arms in a huff.

"Well, lucky for you, _I_ wasn't distracted and was able to silence you two screaming before the rest of the house heard. Now, I only heard part of what was going on, care to fill in the rest?" Blaise turned his whole body towards her, showing that she had his full attention.

Hermione shook her head, "What all did you hear?"

"Oh, something along the lines of you calling him a little whiny brat who had no right telling you what you could or could not do, nor that he had a say in who you talked to. You were screaming like a banshee by then, so I thought I would save everyone else's eardrums."

She laughed at that and then sighed, waiting and thinking a few minutes before deciding on how much to reveal to the Italian…

**_April 10__th__, 1998_**

_They were in the very top room of Shell Cottage, his room. Draco and Hermione stood across the room from each other, looking as though they were hoping to set the other on fire with just their stare alone. Hermione had come back from a quick mission with Ron and went to look for Draco, only to find him sulking in his room for some unknown reason. When she'd asked him about it he'd muttered something and stood near the window. So she told him he was acting worse than Ron, which the blonde obviously didn't like being compared to the redhead…_

"_You dare compare me to that imbecile?" he growled at her stepping towards her._

"_Oh believe me, I dare. You are acting exactly as he does, and exactly like Harry does sometimes. Something or someone made you mad, I was concerned, and what do you do? Mutter something unintelligible and sulk near the window. Like that's going to do anybody any good, Draco! You really think that's going to make it better? Acting like a little kid is going to make it better?" she yelled while gesturing wildly with her arms._

"_I don't have to tell you everything that's wrong with me, Granger. And don't compare me to those blockheads that you call your friends!"_

"_Granger? We're back to that, are we? And don't go telling me "old habit." That's a load of horseshit and you know it!"_

"_Well guess what sweetheart, it __**is**__ an old habit! And you call me Malfoy whenever I severely piss you off, so the habit's mutual!"_

"_For the love of God, Draco, what the hell has caused you to be so angry at me?" Hermione rubbed her temples before dropping her hands to her sides, "What have I done?"_

_He clenched his fists and glared at the ground before mumbling something. She moved closer, standing a few feet away from him and being forced to look up since he was taller by a few inches before asking him to repeat what he said._

"_Are you serious?" she glared at him after he'd repeated himself, "Are you fucking kidding me right now? You're pissed off because I went on an Order mission with Ron? Of all things, that's why you're mad? You wanna explain that one to me?"_

_He muttered "Not exactly." and she let out a laugh before turning away from him, her arms flailing at the sides a little, "I can't believe this! You're acting like a five year old!"_

"_Excuse me?" his head snapped up to look at her._

"_You heard me!" she turned and stretched her arm in front of her, pointing a finger at him, "You are being a whiny little brat! You can't get pissed off at me because of where I go and who I decide to spend my time with! That's not for you to decide Draco! It's my own choice! And if I decide to go on a mission with Ron, then so be it!"_

"_No you won't!"_

"_Excuse me? Did you not just hear what I said?"_

"_Oh I heard all right, but you are not going anywhere with Weasley! For Merlin's sake, take Potter or Blaise or Theo next time!" he expression changed slowly becoming more pleading as he talked._

"_And why can't I go with Ron? Why do you have such a problem with Ron? Please enlighten me, your highness?"_

"_I have my own reasons!"_

"_Look, I know you don't like him because of what happened at school but-"_

"_That's not the only reason…" he whispered sitting on the edge of the bed._

_Hermione felt her heart ache and all her anger leave while looking at him. Draco held his head in his hands, looking defeated. Looking at him like this reminded her too much of what happened sixth year at Hogwarts, and she swore she never wanted to see him looking so defeated again. He refused to look at her when she kneeled in front of him. She reached and ran a hand through his hair, pulling his away, before gently holding his face and making him look at her._

"_Tell me. Just tell me what's wrong so I can fix it," she whispered._

"_You can't fix this. This is something that not even you and your brilliant mind can fix," the words had trouble leaving his mouth. His hands kept shaking on their own so he lightly placed them on her forearms._

"_Draco. Tell me. You've never had a problem telling me what was bothering you before, why now?"_

"_Because…" he closed his eyes and took a deep breath, "it scares me more than __**him**__, more than anything I've been through."_

"_What does it have to do with Ron?"_

"_He loves you…" he blurted out and looked up at her to see her eyes widen, "…he does. You can clearly see it on his face whenever he looks at you."_

"_And why is that a problem?" she lightly kept a hand running through his hair. He didn't answer her for several minutes. "Draco. Tell me why, please?"_

"_Because…I…I don't want you to love him back," he looked down quickly and closed his eyes, "I don't want you to."_

"_Draco, look at me."_

"_Just tell me you don't love him," he said softly._

_She lifted his chin and wiped at the tears that he didn't realize were there. Without saying a word, he pulled on her waist and lifted her to sit across his lap. Wrapping his arms around her waist and burying his face in her neck, Draco held her tight. Hermione rested her cheek against his head and played with the hair at the back of his neck._

"_I'd be lying if I said that I didn't," she felt his arms tense a bit, "He's one of my best friends. He's like a brother to me, Draco. Back at school, I thought that maybe someday it could happen, but things change. I love him, yes, but no more than I love Harry or Blaise or Ginny or Theo. And I know you are still having problems being accepted by Ron, and I'm sorry for that. I really wish he could trust you as I-"_

"_I love you," he blurted out, his grip slack just in case she wanted to run. He knew she would run…what else would she due after being told that from a Death Eater?_

_Hermione sat up straight and in complete shock. She opened and closed her mouth several times before figuring out what to say, which in all honesty wasn't the most intelligible thing she'd ever said after hearing such a confession: "You…you what?"_

"_I…" he swallowed the lump in his throat and looked up at her briefly before looking away, "I love you…at least, I think I do…"_

_She gave a little laugh, "You think?"_

_He nodded and frowned before looking back at her, "I'm going to sound like a complete fluff for saying this, but you make me happy. Everything else just kind of disappears when I see you. All the good and all the bad is just gone when you're around. Is…is that what love is? Pansy used to say she loved me all the time, but I don't think she really meant it…"_

"_Love is…different for each person, I guess. You just kind of know it's there. Didn't you ever tell Pansy-"_

"_No," he said and shook his head very quickly making her smile, "she only annoyed the hell outta me. And I've only ever told my mother that I love her, because she is my mother after all. But you don't have to say it back or anything. I don't really expect you to, I just thought you should know…I wanted you to know…"_

_Hermione smiled even more as he rambled, his brow furrowing while he looked off to the side. She sighed and shook her head once before kissing his cheek. He immediately stopped talking and looked at her with wide eyes before nuzzling her neck again._

"Granger?"

"Hmm? Sorry, I was just…"

"Remembering. Yeah, I know how that feels," Blaise sighed and looked at her expectantly.

"Alright," she groaned, "He…he told me that he loved me…"

The Italian's jaw dropped, "You're kidding."

"No…we had an argument about Ron. And he just kind of blurted it out. It was…honestly, adorable," she smiled, looking out at the waves.

"Forgive me if I'm being too forward, but have you two ever-"

"Twice. Only twice," A tear fell down her cheek.

"That bad?"

The two both laughed.

"No," Hermione wiped at her eyes, "And I can't believe I'm telling you this…it was perfect. He was…wonderful, I guess. I don't have much to compare it to, but I'd definitely chose Draco. There was just something."

"Uh-huh. And do I get to hear this story too, since I am apparently the new Ginnerva?"

"She would be so pissed if she heard you call her that."

"Oh I know. That's why I do it. Speaking of, should we contact her?"

"No, not yet," Hermione shook her head, "We will eventually. I have a slight suspicion that Greyback's not the only one behind what's been going on. Especially since we were in that camp for a while before anyone recognized us."

"True. Maybe it is time to go back?"

The two sat in silence for a few minutes…

"Another week?"

"Before we start going back, or before we say hello to everyone again?"

"Blaise…I think, maybe it is time to go home. Final decision in the morning?"

He nodded and the two went off to find a place to rest. Little did they know that they're final decision had already been made for them, miles away, and lurking near some of their dear best friends…

* * *

So, I don't believe I have a good enough excuse as to why it has taken me so long to update. All I can do is beg everyone's forgiveness for taking so very freakin' long, and I hope that you enjoy the new chapter! I promise to try and update more, since my schedule's not as busy now! :)

Read&Review please!


	4. Author's Note!

Author's Note:

Yes, all chapters have been updated as of August 1st!

I have tweaked some dates and such, and have finally figured out where I want the storyline to go.

I will try and update as soon as I can. I'm hoping to have the chapters longer before I add them.

Hopefully you all enjoy Secrets!

Also, a note to the readers of my other story: I'm not sure if I'll be continuing it right away. I haven't been able to keep up with the Naruto universe as well I'd like, so for now, my other story is on hiatus until further notice.

-Ryo-Fye


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